Sound producing device



Feb. 21, 1933. L, J. GRUBMAN 1,898,010

SOUND PRODUCING DEVICE Filed Oct. 8, 1931 INVENTOR Leo J. Grubrnan BY AORNEYS Patented Feb. 21, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE LEO J.GRUBMAN, OF BELLE HARBOR, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOB T0 VOICES, CORPORATED, Q

OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE SOUND rnonncme nnvzonApplication filed October 8, 1931.

This invention relates to toys and more particularly to sound producingdevices commonly known as criers or voices for dolls and like toys.

The object of the present invention is to generally improve the design,construction, and assembly of sound producing devices, particularlycriers, such as are disclosed in a number of my prior patents, bestexemplified by my Patents N 0. 1,590,188 and No. 1,- 658,982, issuedJune 29, 1926 and February 14, 1928, respectively.

The primary object of the present invention resides in the provision ofsuch a sound producing device which will be more compact than thoseheretofore made, for a given air capacity. T'Vith my construction, thediameter of the casing of the crier may be sub stantially reduced,thereby making it possible to use the same with small dolls as well aswith large ones, so that a single size or standard construction may beused for a wide range of sizes of dolls. Conversely, this object of myinvention may be stated as making possible increased air capacity, andconsequently increased length of cry, for a given external dimension ofcrier.

Criers of the class here considered ordinarily include a movable soundproducing head attached to one end of a flexible bellows. The soundproducing head is usually circular and composed of a plurality of partsforming a sound passage leading into a radial sound channel, and anannular sound chamber having sound discharge openings located oppositeor remote from the sound channel. A reed located beneath the channel ispassed by air from the bellows, which then flows through the channel andthe chamber, and finally out'of the sound discharge openings. Difficultyis sometimes experienced, due to improper assembly of the parts of thesound producing head, whereby the sound discharge openings are locatedadjacent instead of remote from the channel, thereby making the soundchamber useless and ineffective. Accordingly, another object of thepresent invention is to overcome this difficulty and to provide a soundproducing head inv which the aforesaid channel and Serial no. 567,558.

chamber are made of a single member and therefore are incapable of beingimproperly related.

Another object of the present invention resides in extremesimplification of the crier, whereby only a few parts are needed for thecomplete device, which parts are themselves greatly simplified andcheapened.

The sound producing head is ordinarily weighted so that the crier willbe gravity operated. This necessitates the use of heavy metal which, inprior constructions, had to be worked and brought into a relativelycomplicated shape. Still another object of the present invention is toobviate the necessity of Working or shaping heavy metal pieces, and toso design the crier that only a single part need be made of heavy metal,which part is a plain fiat element, such as a washer.

A still further object of the present in-' vention resides in theprovision of a crier the various parts of which and the mode of assemblyof which are adapted for manufacture and assembly wholly by means ofautomatic machinery.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and such other objects as willhereinafter appear, my invention resides in the sound crier elements andtheir relation one to the other, as hereinafter are more particularlydescribed in the specification and sought to be defined in the claims.The specification is accompanied by a drawing in which:

Fig. l is a perspective view showing the parts of the sound producinghead of the crier in separated relation;

Fig. 2 is a section taken in elevation through a completely assembledcrier;

Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken in the plane of the line 3-8 in Fig.2; and

Fig. a is an inverted plan view ofthe sound producing head of the crierwith the gravity weight removed.

The various constructional features of my invention are hereparticularly embodied in a crier for dolls, but it will be understoodthat these features are generically applicable to sound producingdevices other than criers, for the production of a variety of sounds,and for use with a variety of toys.

Referring to the drawing and particularly to Fig. 2 thereof, the presentcrier, like those of the prior art, comprises a sound producing head A,secured to a flexible bellows B and movable within a protective casingC. The casing C is made of a generally cylindrical or tubular wall 12the ends of which are closed by caps 14 and 16. The cap 14 is filledwith large holes or openings 18 for the discharge of sound from thedevice, and serves merely to protect the interior parts of the crier.The bellows B consists of a tubular or frustro-conical piece of flexibleair-tight material the larger end of which is closed by the cap 16 andis secured thereby to the end of the casing O, as is clearly evidentfrom an inspection of the drawing. The sound producing head, generallydesignated A, is secured to and closes the other end of the bellows B..Vhen the crier is placed in the position shown in Fig. 2, the weightedsound producing head A promptly descends, thereby causing expulsion ofair from the bellows through the sound producing head, the latter, ofcourse, including a reed operated by the discharged air.

The novelty of the present construction centers about the soundproducing head A, and this is shown in exploded or disassemled relationin Fig. l of the drawing. Referring to that figure, the sound producinghead comprises a sheet metal cap 22, a reed 24, a sealing disc 26, and agravity weight in the form of a relatively heavy washer 28. As isobvious from inspection of the drawing, the only intricate part is thecap 22, and even this is simply a sheet metal part which is readily andcontinuously stamped out of flat sheet metal in an ordinary press.

Cap 22 comprises a preferably radial air channel 30 leading directlyintov an annular air chamber 32, the channel and chamber being connectedat the junction 34. The chamber 32 is provided with a plurality of sounddischarge openings 36 which are located opposite or remote from the airchannel 30. It will be evident that air expelled from bellows B willflow through weight 28, sealing disc 26, and after passing reed 24 andbeing set into vibration thereby, will continue to flow radially outwardthrough channel 30 and thence in opposite directions around the soundchamber 32, finally discharging through the openings 36. It willimmediately be evident that with this construction the channel 30 andthe openings 36 in chamber 32 cannot be relatively displaced andtherefore cannot be mistakenly assembled or subsequently moved to aposition permitting direct discharge of air from channel 30 throughopenings 36, without preliminarily circulating through the chamber 32.

The integral piece of sheet metal from which the cap 22 is formed,further includes a depending peripheral flange 38, a ring of prongs 40disposed between channel 30 and chamber 32, and a shallow recess 42concentric with the relatively deep channel 30. The function ofdepending peripheral flange 38 is to receive and hold sealing ring 26,weight 28, and bellows B. The function of the series of prongs 40 is tosecure and lock sealing ring 26 in place, preventing rotation thereof,and sealing the air channel 30 from the air chamber 32 except at theirregular point of junction 34. The purpose of the shallow recess 42 issimply to provide clearance for free vibration of the reed 24.

Reed 24 is simply a flat piece of sheet metal the stationary end 44 ofwhich is preferably widened and provided with a short depending tab 46.

Sealing disc 26 may be made of any desired material, but is preferablymade of a fibrous material, such as cardboard, so that it may be readilysecured to the central portion of the cap 22 by the use of prongs 40previously mentioned. The disc is provided with a central hole 48 whichexposes the vibratory end of reed 24 and permits free passage of airpast the reed and into channel 30. Disc 26 is preferably also providedwith a slit 50 for receiving the tab 46 of reed 24. Any preferred formof mating means may be used to hold the reed in place, but that hereshown in exceedingly simple and permits rapid preliminary assembly ofthe reed and disc and proper alignment of I the reed with reces 42 andchannel 30. \Vhen the sound producing head is completely assembled andthe parts thereof are locked together, the reed is, of course, securelyand permanently locked in position.

In assembling the device, the tab 46 of reed 24 is placed in slit 50,and the downwardly struck portion of disc 26 at the slit 50 may then bepushed upwardly or brought flush with the remainder of the disc, therebyholding reed 24 quite snugly in place. Disc 26 is then forced into cap22. The diameter of the disc is such that the fit in the cap is a forcefit, and air leakage around the disc into air chamber 32 is effectuallyprevented even though no cement or adhesive is used. At the sametime'the inner portion of disc 26 is forced through the series of prongs40, and these are in turn bent around the lower face of disc 26, as isbest shown in Fig. 4. This figure also shows how reed 24 is exposed inopening 48. The prongs 40 prevent rotation of disc 26 and consequentmisalignment of reed 24 with channel 30. These prongs also preventdirect escape of air from opening 48 outwardly to air chamber 32, andinstead constrain the air to flow past reed 24 and through channel 30.Any other sealing means may be used instead of the prongs 40, and infact such sealing means may even be dispensed with, and the pressureobtained between the parts when completely assembled may alone be reliedupon.

Weight 28 takes the form of a relatively thick fiat washer. It may bemade in any desired manner, as by casting or by stamping the same fromheavy stock. It will be evident that when weight 28 is forced with thebellows material into cap 22 and there locked in position, as by the useof a; force fit, which I prefer, or, if desired, but less preferably, bysubsequent turning or inbending of the edge of the cap 22 about thelower face of weight 28, the weight will hold sealing disc 26, the reed24:, and the cap 22 pressed together in desired relation, besidesforming an air-tight connection with the bellows material.

In Figs. 2 and 3, it will be readily appreciated that there is acontinuous air passage from the bellows B to the sound dischargeopenings 36. This air passage includes first the center of weight 28 andnext the hole 48 in sealing disc 26. The air then flows past the free orvibratory end of reed 24 which is set into vibration thereby. Clearancefor this vibration is permitted by shallow recess 42. The air then flowsradially outward through channel 30, and then flows through chamber 32and out of the sound discharge openings 36'. In effect this series ofpassages comprises a single sound passage having an inlet end at thereed 24 and an outlet end at the discharge openings 36, and the saidsound passage (which is equivalent to the horn of a musical instrumentor loud speaker) is formed out of the single piece of sheet metalconstituting the cap 22. The sealing disc 26 with vibratory reed 24effectively completes the sound producing head, and it is obvious thatthe weight 28 may, if desired, be dispensed with, in which case theweight of cap 22 is alone relied upon to operate the device. For thispurpose, cap 22 should preferably be made of sheet metal of increasedgauge or thickness. I prefer, however, to form the cap out of relativelythin sheet metal and to subsequently add the separate weight 28, whichserves additional functions in locking sealing disc 26 against cap 22and anchoring the bellows B within cap 22.

It will be evident, from inspection of Fl 2, that the internal diameterof bellows B is substantially equal to the external diameter of thesound producing head A. This is so because of the thinness of thematerial used for sheet metal cap 22, which is in sharp con- 7 trastwith the thick metal heretofore used and intended to act as the gravityweight of the device. It will therefore be seen that theexternal'diameter of the casing C of the crier is greatly reduced for agiven diameter of bellows, or conversely, that for a given size ofeasing the air capacity and consequently the length of the cry caused bythe bellows may be greatly increased. The sound producing head is alsocompact in a vertical direction, and here again space economy isobtainable, but this factor is of less importance than that of thediameter, already pointed out.

It is believed that the mode of constructing and assembling, the mode ofoperation, and the many advantages of the present improved soundproducing device, will, for the most part, be apparent from theforegoing detailed description thereof. It will further be apparent thatwhile I have shown and described my invention in preferred form, manychanges and modifications may be made in the structure disclosed,without departing from the spirit of the invention, described in thefollowing claims.

I claim:

1. In a device of the class described, a sound producing head comprisinga cap made of a piece of metal struck into a form including a soundchannel leading into a sound chamber having sound discharge openingsdisposed remotely from the sound channel, a vibratory reed mountedadjacent the sound channel, and means closing the sound chamber.

2. In a device of the class described, a sound producing head comprisinga sheet metal cap made of a single piece of sheet metal struck into aform including a radial sound channel leading into an annular soundchamber having sound discharge openings disposed opposite the soundchannel, and a depending peripheral flange, a fiatsheet metal vibratoryreed mounted adjacent the sound channel, and means closing the soundchamber and sealing the same from the sound channel except at theirregular point of junction.

3. In a device of the class described, a ound producing head comprisinga can made of a single piece of sheet metal struck into a form includingasound passage having entrant and discharge ends, and a dependingperipheral flange, a vibratory reed mounted adjacent the entrant end ofthe sound passage, and a gravity weight in the form of a simple thickflat washer received by the peripheral flange of the cap.

4. In a device of the class described, a sound producing headcomprisinga cap made of a single piece of sheet metal struck into a form includinga sound channel leading into a sound chamber having sound dischargeopenings disposed remotely from the sound channel, and also including adepending peripheral flange, a vibratory reed mounted adjacent the soundchannel, means closing the sound chamber, and a gravity weight in theform of a simple thick fiat washer received by the peripheral flange ofthe cap.

5. A sound producing device of the class described, comprising a metalcap made of a single piece of metal struck into a form including a soundchannel leading into a sound chamber having sound discharge openingsdisposed remotely from the sound channel, a vibratory reed mountedadjacent the sound channel, means closing the sound chamber, a tubularcasing having ends one of which is perforate and the other of which isimperforate, and a generally tubular flexible bellows one end of whichis closed and secured to the casing by the imperforate end, and theother end of which is secured to the metal cap.

6. A sound producing device of the class described, comprising a capmade of a piece of sheet metal struck into a form including a soundpassage having entrant and discharge ends, and a depending peripheralflange, a reed mounted adjacent the entrant end of the sound passage, agravity weight in the form of a simple thick flat washer received by theperipheral flange of the cap, a tubular casing having ends one of whichis perforate and the other of which is imperforate. and a generallytubular flexible bellows one end of which is closed and secured to thecasing by the imperforate end, and the other end of which is securedbetween the weight and the flange of the cap.

7. A sound producing device of the class :lescribed, comprising a sheetmetal cap made of a single piece of sheet metal struck into a formincluding a radial sound channel leading into an annular sound chamberhaving sound discharge openings disposed opposite the sound channel, andalso including a depending peripheral flange, a vibratory reed mountedadjacent the sound channel, means closing the sound chamber and sealingthe same from the sound channel except at their point of junction, agravity weight in the form of a simple thick flat washer adapted to bereceived within the peripheral flange of the cap, a tubular casinghaving ends one of which is perforate and the other of which isimperforate, and a generallytubular flexible bellows one end of which isclosed and secured to the casing by the imperforate end, and the otherend of which is secured between the washer and the flange of the cap.

8. In a device of the class described, a sound producing head comprisinga single piece of metal struck into a form including a sound passagehaving entrant and discharge ends, and a depending peripheral flange, agenerally flat sheet metal reed disposed beneath the entrant end of thesound passage and having at its stationary end a downwardlv bent tab, asealing disc having a central opening and a slit for receiving the tab,said disc being received within the peripheral flange of the cap.

9. In a device of the class described, a

sound producing head comprising a single air passage opening on thereed, said disc being secured to the rim of the cap and beingadditionally secured to the cap by the aforesaid holding means in orderto separate the chamber from the channel except at their regular pointof junction.

10. In a device of the class described, a sound producing headcomprising a single piece of metal struck into a form including ashallow recess surmounted by a relatively deep sound channel leadingdirectly into a sound chamber having a series of sound dischargeopenings distributed remotely from the sound channel, a dependingperipheral flange, and a series of holding prongs struck downwardly fromthe top surface of the cap between the recess and the sound chamber, areed disposed beneath the recess and channel and having positioningmeans at its stationary end, a sealing disc having a central opening andmeans mating with the positi oning means for holding the reed in properalignment with the recess and channel, said disc being forced within theperipheral flange of the cap and being additionally secured to the capby the aforesaid series of holding prongs in order to seal the chamberfrom the channel except at their point of junction.

11. In a device of the class described, a sound producing headcomprising a single piece of metal struck into a form including a.shallow radial recess surmounted by a relatively deep radial soundchannel leading di- '-ectly into an annular sound chamber having aseries of sound discharge openings distributed opposite the soundchannel, a depending peripheral flange, and a ring of holding prongsstruck downwardly from the top surface of the cap between the channeland the sound chamber, a generally flat sheet metal reed disposedbeneath the recess and channel and having at its stationary end adownwardly bent tab, a sealing disc made of cardboard or like fibrousmaterial having a central opening, and a slit for receiving the tab andthereby anchoring the reed in proper alignment with the recess andchannel, said disc being forced within the peripheral flange of the capwith a tight fit and beingadditionally secured to the cap by theaforesaid ring of holding prongs in order to seal the chamber from thechannel except at their point of junction, whereby air applied to thesound producing cap flows through the opening in the sealing disc pastthe reed, through the channel, through the chamber, and finally out ofthe openings.

12. In a sound producing device of the class described, comprising a capmade of a single piece of metal struck into a form including a soundchannel leading directly into a sound chamber having a series of sounddischarge openin s distributed remotely from the sound channel, adepending peripheral flange, a generally flat sheet metal reed disposedbeneath the channel and having at its stationary end a downwardly benttab, a sealing disc having a central opening and a slit for receivingthe tab and thereby anchoring the reed in proper alignment with thechannel, said disc being held against the cap with a tight tit in orderto seal the chamber and the channel, a casing having ends one of whichis perforate and the other of which is imperforate, and a tubularflexible bellows one end of which is closed and secured to the casing bythe imperforate end, and the other end of which is secured to the cap.

13. A sound producing device of the class described, comprising a sheetmetal cap made of a single piece of sheet metal struck into a formincluding a shallow recess surmounted by a relatively deep sound channelleading directly into a sound chamber having a series of sound dischargeopenings distributed remotely from the sound channel, a dependingperipheral flange, and a series of holding prongs struck downwardly fromthe top surface of the cap between the channel and the sound chamber, areed disposed beneath the recess and channel, a sealing disc having anair passage opening on the reed, said disc being received by theperipheral flange of the cap and being additionally secured to the capby the aforesaid series of holding prongs, a gravity weight in the formof a simple flat washer received within the peripheral flange of thecap, a tubular casing having ends one of which is perforate and theother of which is imperforate, and a generally tubular flexible bellowsone end of which is closed and secured to the casing by the imperforateend, and the other end of which is secured between the washer and theflange of the cap.

14. A sound producing device of the class described, comprising a cap,made of a single piece of metal struck into a form including a shallowrecess surmounted by a relatively deep sound channel leading directlyinto a sound chamber having a series of sound discharge openingsdistributed remotely from the sound channel, a depending peripheralflange, and a series of holding prongs struck downwardly from the topsurface of the cap between the channel and the sound chamber, a reeddisposed beneath the recess and channel and having at its stationary enda downwardly bent tab, a sealing disc having a central opening and aslit for receiving the tab and thereby anchoring the reed in properalignment with the recess and channel, said disc being received by theperipheral flange of the capand being additionally secured to the cap bythe aforesaid series of holding prongs, a gravity weight in the form ofa simple flat washer received within the peripheral flange of the cap, atubular casing having ends one of which is perforate and the other ofwhich is imperforate, and a generally tubular flexible bellows one endof which is closed and secured to the casing by the imperforate end, andthe other end of which is secured between the washer and the flange ofthe cap.

15. In a device of the class described, a sound producing headcomprising a cap made of a piece of metal struck into a form including asound channel leading into a sound chamber having sound dischargeopenings, a vibratory reed mounted adjacent the sound channel, and meansclosing the sound chamber.

16. In a device of the class described, a sound producing headcomprising a cap made of a single piece or" sheet metal struck into aform including a sound channel leading into a sound chamber having sounddischarge openings, and also including a depending peripheral flange, avibratory reed mounted adjacent the sound channel, means closing thesound chamber and separating the same from the sound channel except attheir regular point of junction, and a gravity weight received by theperipheral flange of the cap.

17. In a device of the class described, a sound producing headcomprising a single piece of sheet metal struck into a form including asound channel leading into a sound chamber having sound dischargeopenings, and also including a depending peripheral flange, a generallyflat sheet metal reed disposed beneath the sound channel, and a sealingdisc received within the peripheral flang of the cap, said disc havingan opening exposing the vibratory end of the reed, the stationary end ofsaid reed being secured to said disc and being additionally held betweenthe disc and the aforesaid single piece of metal.

Signed at New York in the County of New York and State of New York this7th day of October A. D. 1931.

LEO J. GRUBMAN.

